How Many Times?
by SamiraGranger
Summary: What happens when a person you thought you'd never see again shows up out of the blue? H/A on indefinite hiatus
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING!!! (well, except my OC)**

**This part is set just before the series begins...**

* * *

**Prologue**

A soft wind blew through the trees as Helga sat in the park, waiting for her older sister to return from the music store. "Where is she?" she muttered to herself. "She was supposed to be here by now!" Pulling her thin jacket closer around her, she looked across the pond at the kids flying kites. Gazing wistfully at a certain blonde, Helga sighed. "Oh Arnold, why do I have to hide so?"

"Helga! I got it!" Hearing her sister behind her, Helga looked over the back of the bench and saw a girl with dark auburn hair running towards her. "It finally arrived! I got the latest cd!"

"That's great!" Helga said as she watched Cordelia waving her bag around. As her older sister got closer to her, Helga saw the happiness in her identical eyes.

"No kidding." Sitting down on the bench, Cordelia pulled out the cd and popped it into the cd player that was between them. Listening to the first song, they smiled. "Perfect!"

"Cordelia, what do you plan on doing now?" Helga asked as she hugged her jacket even closer to her, shivering.

"I want to get out of here," she said as she leaned back on the bench. "No more having to deal with Bob and oh-so-perfect Miss Olga. Ugh, what does Olga have that we don't?"

"You mean besides the grades, the honors, and the attention from him?" Helga said sarcastically. "She's 'Daddy's Little Girl' and can do nothing wrong." Turning her gaze back across the pond, she scowled as she saw that the kids from her class were gone.

"Let's go home, sis," Cordelia said as she saw Helga's expression. "Bob's probably back by now. You know how he gets when we are late to dinner, especially with Olga visiting from her last year in college."

"Yeah." Not looking forward to going home, Helga got up and followed her sister out of the park.

* * *

"What is the meaning of this!?" Hearing Bob yelling at Cordelia after Olga had left, Helga cringed as she hid in her room. "What do you mean you are 'going on tour'?"

"Exactly what it sounds like, Bob!" Cordelia yelled at him just as loud. "If you cared to listen to what I say, you would know about the group! Damn it, Bob, you have no respect for those of us that make a living actually doing something that feeds our creativity!"

"Just what do you mean by that, young lady?" Creeping down the stairs to hear better, she tried not to make any unnecessary noises.

"You know very well what I mean!". As Cordelia screamed at her father, she didn't realize what she was unleashing. "You don't care a wit about me and Helga, do you? All you care about are your stupid Beepers, and what extraordinary thing Olga does next! That's why I'm leaving!"

"Oh no you don't, Olga!" Bob roared at the auburn-haired girl. "If you set one foot out of this city, you will never be welcome in this house again, do you hear me?"

"Like I care about anyone in this house except for Helga!" She scowled as she picked up her bags. "Know this, you bastard. If I ever find out you have hurt Helga, you won't have to worry about kicking her out later on in life. I'll come back and take her with me, damn the consequences."

Watching her older sister walk out of the living room, Helga looked at her cautiously. "Do... do you really mean that, sis?"

Hearing the softly spoken question, Cordelia knelt down to look Helga in the eye. "You bet I do, Helga. I would come back here in a heart beat if I found out Bob had hurt you like he did me." Placing her things down for a second, she pulled her younger sister into her arms. "Don't give up on your dreams, no matter what they cost you." Pulling back, Cordelia grabbed her things and stood up. "Have a good third grade year, you hear? I'll see you again soon, lil sis."

Watching the younger of her older sisters walk out of the house, Helga felt a tear run down her cheek. "Bye, big sis."


	2. Chapter One

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING!!! (except for Cordelia) The song is 'This I Promise You' by *NSYNC. **

**Now we are back to the timeline of the actual series!**

* * *

**Chapter One**

Walking down the hallway of PS 118, Helga sneered at everyone that looked her way. Trying not to rub at the pain in her right cheek, she stormed into Mr. Simmons's classroom. Sitting down in her seat behind Arnold, she glared out the window as she waited with the rest of the class for their teacher to arrive. Feeling someone staring at her, she turned and saw Arnold looking at her. "What you looking at, Football Head?" she snapped as she winced slightly.

"What happened to you, Helga?" Arnold asked as she gripped the desk hard.

"None of your beeswax, Arnoldo!" As Arnold turned back around in his seat, Mr. Simmons walked into the room.

"Morning class!" Mr. Simmons said as he looked around the room, smiling. "You all know what special day today is, right?" At seeing the confused expressions on his students' faces, Mr. Simmons rolled his eyes. "It's Field Day! Out with you all, and enjoy the special festivities on this special day!"

As the rest of the class ran out of the room, Helga slowly walked with Phoebe. Going to the restroom, she sighed as she put a hand to her cheek. "Why does he do this?" Helga muttered under her breathe. Looking in the mirror, she winced as she saw how dark the bruise was. "Criminey, Bob."

"Helga, what happened?" Turning to look at her Japanese best friend, Helga scowled.

"Bob, again." Making sure not to look back at the mirror, Helga washed her hands. "I miss my sister, Pheebs. I haven't heard from her for two years..."

"Well, maybe she's just been busy fixing up her new life." Walking out of the restroom, they hurried out to the playground. "Why don't we listen to that new cd by Liah?" Sitting down on an empty bench, Helga watched as Phoebe got out a small cd player and put a cd in to it. After Phoebe pressed play, Helga leaned back against the table and scowled at the kids that were whispering about her bruise. Listening to the familiar song, Helga closed her eyes as she thought of her sister.

"Ohh ohh...

When the visions around you,  
Bring tears to your eyes  
And all that surround you,  
Are secrets and lies  
I'll be your strength,  
I'll give you hope,  
Keeping your faith when it's gone  
The one you should call,  
Was standing here all along..

And I will take  
You in my arms  
And hold you right where you belong  
Till the day my life is through  
This I promise you  
This I promise you

I've loved you forever,  
In lifetimes before  
And I promise you never...  
Will you hurt anymore  
I give you my word  
I give you my heart (give you my heart)  
This is a battle we've won  
And with this vow,  
Forever has now begun...

Just close your eyes (close your eyes)  
Each loving day (each loving day)  
I know this feeling won't go away (no..)  
Till the day my life is through  
This I promise you..  
This I promise you..

Over and over I fall (over and over I fall)  
When I hear you call  
Without you in my life baby  
I just wouldn't be living at all...

And I will take (I will take you in my arms)  
You in my arms  
And hold you right where you belong (right where you belong)  
Till the day my life is through  
This I promise you baby

Just close your eyes  
Each loving day (each loving day)  
I know this feeling won't go away (no..)  
Every word I say is true  
This I promise you

Every word I say is true  
This I promise you  
Ooh, I promise you..."

"Dang, who knew that Helga actually liked that type of song," Gerald said as he tossed a baseball towards Arnold. "I mean, come on, she's a bully, man!"

Catching the ball, Arnold sighed. "Why don't you give her the benefit of the doubt?" Throwing the ball back to Gerald, Arnold continued. "Just because she's a bully doesn't mean that she can't like those songs. Besides, Liah is a good singer." Waiting for Gerald to toss the ball, he sighed. "What do you think happened to her, anyway?"

"I don't know, Arnold," Gerald said, looking down at the baseball. "No one knows. Liah disappeared from the music scene a few weeks ago. The magazines say that she is headed to her hometown to spend time with her family, but no knows who her family is, or even where she is from." Throwing the ball, he laughed. "But what's the luck that she's here in Hillwood, huh? Next to none."

* * *

*Knock, knock, knock*

"Why hello!" Phil said as he opened the door to the boarding house. "Anything I can do for you?"

"You don't happen to have a room for rent, do you?" A girl in dark clothes asked as she watched the animals running down the street. "I used to live here in town, but just got back and don't have a place to stay."

"Why sure!" Phil said as she stood there. "I believe the room next to Ernie's is empty. Why don't you check out the room and, if you like it, we'll talk about rent." Standing aside for the girl to come in, Phil felt like he had seen her before.


End file.
